Does this make sense.....Athens, sailing from Corfu AND visits to Santorini & Naxos

I imagine it would be semi-disastrous if you didn't make it to Corfu in time for your sailing trip. You've built in some extra time, but a problem with the Naxos-Athens ferry could cause you to miss your Corfu flight, or there could be a problem with the flight itself, and there's not a great deal of transporation on and off the islands. If it's possible to schedule things to reduce your risk even more, I'd consider doing it. I see two possibilities:

1. Go straight to Santorini on your arrival day (risky in itself if you can't get a through-ticket so the airline is responsible for getting you there if your trans-Atlantic flight is delayed). You could then visit Athens between Naxos and Corfu, since you need to return to Athens anyway.

2. Move one of your Athens nights from the beginning of your trip to the time after Naxos. That buys you an extra day of protection in case of ferry problems. The disadvantage of this approach is that it means an extra hotel check-in, making your time in Athens notably less efficient.

Honestly, I'm not sure what I'd do in your situation.

I tried to take a look at your Athens-Corfu flight options on skyscanner.com but found no non-stops. That seems odd; I'm pretty sure you don't want to visit Vienna, Dusseldorf, or London. Perhaps it's too early to expect all of the September 2016 flight options to be loaded, but at the moment I'm basically seeing slow, rather costly choices. Have you figured out the specifics of that flight leg?

Thanks...I'm not sure I'd do this either! We are flexible and if we don't do the corfu sailing trip we are totally flexible. Thanks for your reply. Donna

Donna --
Is there some reason that you especially want to do the sailing trip around Corfu?? Because there are some FAB sailing trips going out of PAROS... and they let YOU decide pretty much which Cyclades isles you want. I helped my Neighbor plan such a trip for late May (I've been to almost all the cyclades Isles) ... and they had an AMAZING time in 7 days -- they went to the Western Cyclades (Sifnos & Milos I think), then over to Folegandros and Amorgos, back to Antiparos... then at the end, they took a 1 hour ferry to Naxos and lay on the beach.

When you say that date is firm, does that mean that you've already put down a deposit. Or you won the trip on a local radio show? If so, forget I said anything,

I think that the itinerary you have suggested is very do-able, my only suggestion being the same one made already . . . don't spend the night before your flight on Naxos, because if strong seas or a strike cause the ferry to be canceled, you'll miss your flight. We did a shortened/modified version of your itinerary a couple of years ago. Originally the trip was planned to be two nights in Athens, two in Nafplion, fast ferry to Santorini and 2 nights there, ferry to Naxos and 2 nights there, ferry to Athens for a flight home. At the suggestion of the Greek travel agent we worked with, we revised the itinerary and put the Nafplion nights at the end, so as to be overnight on the mainland the night before our flight. We didn't have enough vacation time to spend 3 nights each in our 4 destinations. I didn't want to cut out anything so we made due with two nights, getting a taste of two beautiful islands along with Athens and Nafplion. We did suffer one travel glitch. Moments before we were scheduled to board the fast ferry for Santorini, the crew made the decision to cancel it due to strong winds. Not a huge problem, as the Blue Star (regular) ferry was still running. It took us twice as long to get there, cutting into our Santorini time, but we enjoyed a lovely day of cruising down to Santorini. We loved Nafplion so much. Maybe you could add it? Since you will have one final night in Athens before your flight home after Corfu, cut the first stay down to two nights, make it 2 nights on Naxos instead of 3, and add two nights in Nafplion before you go to Corfu. My other suggestion would be to work with a Greek travel agent for all your reservations (hotel, transfers, ferries, rental car). That way, if any problems arise, someone local is there to help you with new arrangements. I'm referring, for example, to the fact that a canceled ferry may leave you unable to get someplace you're scheduled to go to. If you booked a hotel in the new destination on your own, it will be too late to cancel and you'll lose your deposit. If you've booked with a Greek travel agent, they'll cancel the hotel you can't get to, without penalty, and arrange for someplace else for you to stay that night.

Donna

Re: travel agent

I concur with Vickie - I have traveled multiple times to Greece including a 6 month overseas program. I am very comfortable there and speak a little Greek - but on my last visit with my mom - I followed Matt Barrett's advice to use one of his recommended travel agents to book our ferry. They arranged for transportation to and from the ferries and while we were in Crete - we got a message that our ferry to Santorini had been canceled. The Athens travel agent hooked us up with a local travel agency in Crete who helped us out tremendously. They even took us to lunch. They went out of their way to apologize for a canceled ferry (not their fault) - and what could have been a big glitch in our trip ended up being a blessing. We did have to fly through Athens (no direct flight from Iraklion to Santorini at that time) - BUT they again arranged to pick us up at the airport - we went into Athens and had another terrific lunch - and then back to the airport and made it to Santorini without any problems.

I have traveled throughout Europe and Greece by myself and rarely feel the need to use travel agencies - but in this case it was a life saver. I am a bit more cautious when traveling with my mom than I am if I am on my own - I can't imagine what our trip would have been like if we had not had the help of a local agent.

Have fun sailing the Ionian islands - I did that when I was 13 and I loved Zakynthos and have always dreamed of getting to Ithaka (Odysseus pined for Itaka and so can I!) and Cephalonia. Enjoy your trip.

Thank you for all your comments...
1) by "firm" I meant that it is the only week we could book the sailing trip
2) we will use a local travel agent for sure....that will be a new experience for us but I totally understand the need
3) we are reconsidering the sailing trip from Corfu and might just take day sailing trips from the islands we select - if we sail we need to hire a skipper

Now IF we don't do the 7 night sailing trip - we have to select our islands... I would like to spend 3 nights in Athens at some point of the trip so we can explore Athens but other than that we are pretty open .... and if we take the sailing trip out even our dates are open EXCEPT I want to be in Greece on the 27th for my birthday.

I will revisit the Greece travel forum and read about what islands, what order and how..... any and all recommendations are invited (I can plan Hawaii or the Caribbean with the best of them but Greece is beyond my skill set:)) Devouring the Matt Barrett web site. Man there is a TON of information - thanks for that tip.
Donna

I too used Matt Barrett's wonderful website when I was planning our trip. The biggest decision was Naxos versus Paros because he's a big fan of each, but he provided sufficient information for us to make the choice that would most suit us. I'd never used a travel agent for any of our travels but took Matt's advice that this is a very good idea in Greece. Based on recommendations from him, I identified three local travel agencies that all sounded great. I wrote an email to each, making initial inquiry as to their services. I described, in broad outlines, the trip we had in mind and provided a general budget. All three responded and all seemed like great companies to work with. I picked the one whose response was the most personal, warm and friendly. She'd taken cues from me and made some wonderful suggestions. I got to know our travel agent quite well in the months prior to our trip, as each time I had a question, and emailed her, I got a very helpful and detailed reply. We spoke on the phone one time while we were in Greece. I never met her in person but she had a great deal to do with the success of that wonderful vacation.

Donna, Donna ... let's start from the beginning. YES, you may do well to use an agent if you get all gefutzed about planning. The earlier contributor had a good plan - write to Dolphin-Hellas, Fantasy Travel, and Aegean Thesaurus and describe your trip AND (importantly) your budget limits for lodging. Do remember that they won't pick the true "bargain" gems we regulars know... because they don't pay commissions. Also, they build in some profit by arranging (unneeded) "transfers" from ferry to hotel & back, at €20 or so --- when in fact many hotels provide this themselves, or you can hail a taxi for much less. You have time, dont rush to an agency solution.

About the sailing thing --- you don't have to scrap your basic plan ... just where you have that un-doable Corfu thing in, substitute a sail in the CYCLADES... where you will be anyway! You say "chartered sailing trip" but you mention no other friends, and I don't get the vibe that you are super-rich .... so I'm guessing that you are talking about chartering ONE CABIN on a shared skippered Yacht. You don't have to go all the way to the Ionians for that! There are several options that START right in the Cyclades, like this -- http://www.odysseysailing.gr/economy-cabin-cruises.html -- it has good reviews. Its Cruise #1 (Mykonos-Mykonos) goes to a list of smaller islands NOT already on your itinerary; I've been to them and they are great
choices. This sublink http://www.odysseysailing.gr/cruises/economy-cabin-cruise-schedule-2016.pdf shows 2016 schedule & costs, useful for estimates.

I do not know what exactly your Corfu sailing trip would include, but I would recommend keeping it in your itinerary. After spending a semester in Greece, Corfu was my favorite island by far, and I can't wait to go back. The Venetian influences give it a different look from Santorini and the other Cycladic islands. The water was absolutely gorgeous, and Corfu Town was worth the stop. Corfu Town also has two Venetian fortresses that add some diversity to the ancient ruins covering Greece. Even if you decide against the sailing trip, don't miss Corfu!

I truly appreciate Eva's tribute to Corfu, but she had a semester to explore many aspects of Greece ... you have 2 weeks & need to plan accordingly.

More clarification... we will be a party of 4 (2 couples) the budget for the 7 night sail was $7200 including a skipper on a 4 cabin catamaran and than spend another 7 -9 nights. So now I have 14-16 nights to plan which might include a few days sailing...Not sure we can include Corfu and it sounds like we can sail Cyclades which sound great.

Thanks for everything so far! Donna

Thanks Donna -- now u see that providing full details is key to getting the best advice. When you say a charter, you mention a FOUR-CABIN Catamaran ... are you each having a separate room? Actually I do think most such charters have 4 cabins with one going to the skipper. Those links I provided DO also on same website talk about skippered charters, and BTW, most such charters are for minimum of a week. Early this Spring, I helped a neighbor plan a May skippered charter out of Paros that she was deliriously happy about... said it was totally wonderful. We just found it through internet search http://www.archipelclub.com/en/yacht-charter-greece/beneteau-50.php and checked out the reviews for the model of boat. You're allowed to plan your own itinerary, with changes at the time based on weather; best itineraries don't deal with Santorini which has big mooring challenges. They did about 5 isles, then went to Naxos for a few days onshore.

For a short (2-3 day) sail Naxos has these --http://www.greeka.com/cyclades/naxos/island/naxos-sailing.htm -- and other sources of skippered yachts, as does Paros: just google, and get reviews as well. I'm a Naxos habitue in Spring or Fall, and at those times at Sunset, the harbor is full of wonderful smaller sailing yachts and people coming ashore for dinner. I always envy them!